After the 2010 election, Julia Gillard had broken her core election promise that “there will be no carbon tax under a government I lead”. Her credibility has never recovered from that moment. But I have never regarded this breach as a lie because I have never believed that she didn’t believe every word she solemnly uttered at the time.

So if I promise to split the pizza with you, but later change my mind, because the pineapple was tinned (how could I have foreseen that?) that’s alright then? You get the bill. I get free pizza.

Can I use this excuse for my tax return? Officer, I really did believe it was true…

Gillard was hit by unforeseen circumstances:

The PM had no doubt never really contemplated the prospect of a hung parliament in which she lacked the numbers to dictate policy.

“On Sunday, the Gary Morgan poll predicted the election would end in a hung parliament.”

“Sunday, Mark Latham commented that “in all likelihood Senator Bob Brown and his Green Party will control the next Parliament”

It would have been so different if she had a law degree, experience in Parliament and unlimited advisors right? Oh wait… (Graham, do you think people will fall for this?)

She was only applying for the job to run the country.

This mess must be someone’s fault:

She never envisaged that in the new world of dependence on Greens and independents she would have to deal to get the job and then to keep it. Perhaps if she had acknowledged that reality, she would have not sunk so low in the hearts and minds of ordinary Australians.

Oh No. Graham. She doesn’t need to tell them. Ordinary Australians know she did a deal to get “the job”. They just hoped she might do a deal to make Australia a better place instead.

But blame the Greens, Oakshott and Windsor. They held all the cards. After all, everyone knew how keen they were to go with the Coalition.

Richardson laments the lack of voices speaking out for climate change in Australia:

“The leader of the free world, the most powerful man in the world, is proud to proclaim his belief in climate change.”

He wonders why…

“Why is it that Barack Obama is able to declare in his State of the Union address that he will, if necessary, act on climate change in defiance of his congress?”